It’s fair to say that the tramplolines at Better Extreme in Walthamstow got a big thumbs up from my 4 year old. He loved it so much he’s been asking to go back ever since and we’re planning to go again very soon. At first he was skeptical when I told him we’d be visiting a new play centre as he’s pretty attached to the ones we already go to, but the promise of lots of trampolines all linked together was enough to persuade him.

The Better Extreme facilities at the Waltham Forest Feel Good Centre have only been open since October 2016 which probably explains why I hadn’t heard of them until we were invited to visit and try out the trampolines and soft play. I have to say, I was really impressed when we arrived as the new centre is huge, very modern, clean and has excellent facilities (more on that later).

They run a Soft Play and Tots Tramp session for children under 5 years old every Monday and Wednesday at 10am – 1pm and this gives you access to a soft play area which is especially for under 5s and the trampolines. You receive a wristband and have access to the soft play and trampolines for 60 minutes. It’s worth noting that under 5s are not normally allowed on the trampolines at other times when it is being used by older children. We headed to the soft play area first, it is in its own room which makes it nice and secure as the little ones can’t run off. Bonus.

There’s also some tables and chairs you can sit at and (hopefully) enjoy a coffee for five minutes while they burn off some energy (the cafe is just outside). There’s also a large toilet with baby changing facilities in the room too which is very handy.

There are three levels to explore and my 1 year old loved the ball pit and colour-changing lights on the ground floor while the 4 year old loved racing up to the top of the play structure. It’s not massive but it has plenty to amuse a 4 year old for an hour or two.

We were there on a Wednesday around midday and although there were a few children in there when we first arrived, we soon had the place to ourselves. This makes a nice change from the noisy, busy soft play centres we usually go to.

I had to drag my son away to get him to come and try out the trampolines which are in the Extreme Park bit of the centre. Before you enter you have to sign some forms and get your special trampolining socks which are £2 but you can keep them and use them again. We were told that we would have to watch a safety video before we were allowed to use the equipment but it was only afterwards that I realised we had never actually watched this, so I’m not sure at what point that was supposed to happen. Once inside, again it was very quiet with only a couple of other children which meant we had most of it to ourselves. There are 23 floor trampolines and 11 wall ones which are all joined together and my son loved being able to bounce from one trampoline to the next. It was great fun and proved quite a workout for all of us.

My one year old loved it as well and found the whole thing hilarious, giggling the entire time. Our time seemed up all too soon and my son would definitely have stayed on longer. Luckily, there’s a great little cafe in the centre just next to the trampolines so we stayed and had lunch as it certainly works up an appetite. Like most parents, I’m worried about the fact that my son would often rather be playing with some sort of screen (yes, already!! Urgh!) so I loved the fact that he was getting lots of exercise and enjoying himself at the same a time.

The Better Extreme section of the centre also has some other amazing facilities which we had a quick look at although they weren’t open at the time. There’s an ‘Extreme’ 4 storey soft play section for children over 5 which looks great and I love the fact that it is entirely separate from the soft play for the little ones. As other mums will know, it’s really frustrating when older children crash around the areas meant for smaller children and knock into them. There’s also a Clip and Climb area with 11 different climbing structures which looks brilliant and I’ll be bringing my son along to give it a go when he’s a bit older (climbing starts from 5 years old). And there’s a Ninja Run, an extreme obstacle course with foam pits which looks fun and is for children over 8 years old.

I was also lucky enough to have a look around the rest of the centre and there’s so much more going on including a huge gym, fitness studios, a running track and two swimming pools – one a 25 metre pool with dive boards and the second one was a small teaching pool perfect for babies and small children. The real surprise for me was the lovely spa – if you’ve been to one in a gym before they can often feel quite utilitarian but this one actually feels luxurious. Other family-friendly features include a buggy park which is very useful if you’re arriving by public transport, birthday party facilities and a creche for under 5s. You can use the creche for up to 2 hours and it’s included in some membership packages.

Overall, I was super impressed with the Feel Good Centre Waltham Forest. I’m surprised more people don’t know about it as it was very quiet in the week. I understand it is busier at weekends and school holidays but if you have pre-schoolers it’s a great place to visit mid-week. The only issues I have are that some of the prices are quite high for a single session. While the Soft Play & Tots Tramp session is £4.65, normal soft play prices are quite a bit more than others in the area and sessions are limited to 60 minutes which is less time than most as well. If you drive you have to pay for parking (remember to bring change) so that, combined with the entry cost if you’re bringing a few kids, can add up. Also, after visiting the centre and seeing all the great things on offer it seems like the website does not make it easy to see the variety of things you could do. So I’d recommend going down and asking to have a look around. But we’ll definitely be back, my son is desparate to go on the trampolines again and we all want to try out the pool. And I’m just waiting for an opportunity to visit that spa without the kids!

Soft Play & Tots Tramp: Ages 6 months – 5 years

Term Time: Monday & Wednesday 10am-1pm

Summer Holidays (24 July – 31 August) Every week day 10am – 11am

PRICE: £4.65. Trampoline socks £2 (obligatory)

Parking £1 an hour for non-members, members receive a discount and can buy permits.

I’m please to say that you can now read my article about the top 5 places to take the kids in West Essex in the June issue of West Essex Life magazine.

My list includes the Pelican Park in Chigwell, North Weald Airfield, The View at Epping Forest, Ashlyns Farm Park and Play barn and the Gruffalo Trail in Brentwood. West Essex Life is a free magazine so you can usually pick it up in coffee shops.

I’d love to know what you think of my top picks and feel free to share your favourite places to take the kids.

This family-friendly, interactive exhibition brings the funny and inventive world of Dr. Seuss with story telling sessions, chances to dress up, meet characters and play music with the Boom Band. Children will love seeing characters and props from The Cat in The Hat, Green Eggs and Ham and The Lorax. Entrance is included in your Day Pass for the Discover Story Centre and there’s lots of other things to keep the kids amused from the brilliant Story World to the lovely outdoor playground. There’s a cafe on site and lots of lockers where you can leave buggies and valuables before running around. Check the website for the storyteling sessions which are always great.

All week they will also be running animation workshops with Grace Emily Manning at 10.30-12.30 and 2.30-4.30pm. Suitable for 5 year olds and over you will learn how to create animation with your own character inspired by Dr. Seuss.

The latest installation ‘Place (Village)’ by Rachel Whiteread provides the inspiration for the lots of half term activities and workshops. These include a print workshop and craft workshop creating little lantern houses

Time: times vary across the week so check the V&A website for details. The museum is open from 10am – 5.45pmAge: The age varies depending on the workshop and is either 5 years + or 7 years +Tickets & booking info: prices vary according to activity, details on the website but most are drop-in so no need to bookAddress: V&A Museum of Childhood,Cambridge Heath Rd, London E2 9PAFurther information: V&A Museum of Childhood website

Children can become a little farmer at Barleylands farm. Kids will be able to drive a mini landrover, make butter, bottle feed lambs and have a go at making a scarecrow. They can also learn about caring for different animals.

A craft workshop where you will create your own bird cage to take home after learning all about the birds who live in the Valentines Mansion and Gardens Aviary. The session includes a visit to see the birds to get some inspiration and find out more about them.

If you want to get your children out into the forest the Suntrap Education Centre is offering the chance to meet the exotic Suntrap animals including a bearded dragon, snakes and fire salamanders lizards. They will also go on an animal adventure in the forest to discover more creatures.

Time: The session is 10AM – 12.30PM but you can stay in the grounds to play and have a picnic lunch if accompanied by an adult.Age: 5 years and over (under 8s must be accompanied by an adult)Tickets & booking info: £12 per child. You must book in advance by email or by callingAddress: Suntrap Forest Education Centre, Church Rd, Waltham Abbey, Loughton IG10 4AJFurther information: Suntrap Forest Education Centre website

This regular session for little ones at The Duke pub will be hosted for half term by Creative Biscuit, the ceramics cafe in South Woodford. Adults can have lunch or a drink while their little ones paint a bowl, plate or cup. They will be ready a week later after they are glazed and fired at Creative Biscuit.

“Wow, that’s amazing!” A huge roaring Tyrannosaurus rex greeted us as we arrived at Jurassic Kingdom and the three year old was clearly impressed from the start. The Jurassic Kingdom dinosaur trail is an outdoor exhibition of animatronic and static dinosaurs. There are huge ones towering over you, baby ones hatching out of eggs and hungry-looking ones clawing and fighting each other all along a woodland trail.

Jurassic Kingdom is a touring touring exhibition and we visited it in the first few days at its launch location at the National Trust property of Osterley Park, West London. It will be there until 17th April before touring around the country (see tour locations and dates below).

They dinosaur models are fairly good; quite realistic and the ones that move usually also have an impressive roar. Our son was a bit frightened by some of the louder roars but he just asked to move away to look at them from a bit of a distance, and he can be a bit overly sensitive. Plenty of children younger then him seemed to be loving it and roaring loudly back! Most of the dinosaurs are roped off and you’re asked not to touch them but there are some smaller ones that you can climb on along the route or dinsaur eggs that you can pose inside for photos. The majority of them – mostly the larger dinosaurs – have signs with details of their names and some information about where they lived and what they ate etc. Personally I think it would have been good if all of them had labels, or at least names, as our son kept asking what they were all called and I’m a bit rubbish at remembering! We were impressed by the amount of dinosaurs he did recognise though and it never ceases to amaze me how little kids, including ours, can remember the really complicated dinosaur names that I can barely pronounce.

There was also an area that I thought was just a sandpit – I steered our son past it quite quickly as I knew he’d want to take his socks and shoes off and I was reluctant as it was a cold day. However, I’ve since read online that it was actually supposed to be a T-Rex excavation pit but it really wasn’t very clear and they could have had some better signage. We probably would have had a go if we had realised.

Along the trail there are woodlands and a den building area as well as some swings to play on, so lots of natural attractions to amuse the kids apart from the dinosaurs. The bluebells are also starting to make an appearance in the woodland and there’s even a nesting swan very close to the path that the children were all intrigued by.

There’s a small marquee labelled as an education area which has a few chairs in and shows a film about dinosaurs if you need a sit down and a rest on the way. There are also a few toilets dotted along the route.

At the way in and out of the trail, along with a virtual reality ride (an extra £5), a merchandise stall and toilets, there are some food vans. Although these were advertised as “mouth-watering street food vans” online it seemed to be fairly standard van food like chips, coffee and sweets so nothing that was very appealing and I was glad we had brought a picnic. Tickets are not cheap when there is a whole family visiting, so we weren’t alone in bringing our own lunch. And unlike some short-sighted attractions, there are no restrictions on bringing your own food which is great. There are a few logs and picnic tables dotted along the trail but it’s probably a good idea to bring a blanket as they were all busy – they could definitely do with a few more. Half way along the trail there were a few more vans selling drinks and churros and, as we love churros, we shelled out an extortionate £6 for a large portion which turned out to be cold and tastelesss so I’d definitely give those a miss. (I know, we’re mugs!)

You are asked to specify an hourly entrance time when you purchase tickets and when we arrived at about 11am the trail was very busy. However, it never felt overly crowded and it seemed like there was a steady stream of people arriving throughout the day. Also, nobody seemed to be actively checking our time slot so I think this is more to help stagger visitors rather than something they are really strict about. The trail seemed to appeal to both girls and boys alike with kids of both sexes running around excitedly. (This made me happy as far too often dinosaurs seem to be marketed mostly at boys for some reason.)

We spent about three hours doing the trail at a very leisurely pace and with a long stop for our picnic lunch. So you could obviously do it a lot quicker if you needed to or you can stay longer as there is no time limit once you are inside. You could also spend some time looking around Osterly House itself, there’s a National Trust cafe outside the trail if you want something other than the food from vans and the Cadbury Easter egg hunt is taking place in the gardens at the other side of the house. However, our Little One was pretty exhausted by the long walk and the excitement so he was happy to head home full of chat about his favourite dinosaurs.

I’d definitely recommend a visit for any little ones who like dinosaurs and, even for children with only a passing interest, it’s a great way to get the kids out and about in the fresh air enjoying the gardens and woodland.

Parking is provided in fields next to Osterley Park and it is worth noting that the walk to the entrance of Jurassic Kingdom at the side of the house is quite long for little ones and ours was not the only one complaining how far it was. However, it will be no problem for older kids and I just wish we had remembered to bring the buggy board. The whole trail is suitable for prams and is a flat, easy walk.

There is parking on site which is an extra £7 which I think is pretty steep on top of the cost of tickets – be warned it’s cash only! It took us about an hour and twenty minutes to drive from Woodford Green.

If you want to take public transport the nearest tube is Osterley on the Picadilly line and its only a 1 mile walk away. Isleworth train station is 1½ miles away. You can catch the H28 Hayes to Hounslow to Osterley, or the H91 Hounslow to Hammersmith to within 1 mile.

TICKET PRICES

London:

£13.50 adults online, £15 on the door

£11.50 Child online, £13 on the door (Under threes go free)

£46 Family Ticket, £52 on the door

Prices are cheaper for the rest of the tour at the other locations in the UK!

I have to admit that I’m a new convert to the charms of Owls Play Centre. For a long time I had avoided it due to some friend’s bad experiences there on a wet, Saturday afternoon – too busy, too noisy and all a bit too much. So we had been going regularly to Ashlyn’s play centre and farm which we love but it’s just that little bit further away. But recently I realised that I should be making up my own mind and I’m so glad we went.

The first day we went my 3 year old ran around excitedly for 4 hours straight, barely stopping to sip water and shove in some snacks. Since then he asks me almost every day if we can go to the play centre! Luckily for me, when we first went they were doing a deal on the unlimited annual membership and I signed up there and then. And we’ve been back at least once a week since.

The first thing to say is that I was braced for it to be super busy and I was surprise by how quiet it’s been most times we’ve been. We have been going on weekday afternoons and after a busy period over lunch time it usually empties out by 1.30/2pm, presumably for nap times. And it gets even quieter still around 3pm when parents head off for the school run and although I had expected it to get busy after school it doesn’t ever get super hectic. So that was my first worry resolved.

The other great thing is the sheer size of the place, it’s purpose built and so there is loads of play equipment to stop the Little Ones getting bored. There are some big slides in the middle and lots of other little areas, climbing sections, tunnels and rope bridges.

There’s also a really fun machine like a giant hoover which you feed the play balls into and it goes up to the ceiling, then it releases them all after a few minutes to squeals of delight. One of the other aspects that I really like is that they play areas are sectioned off into three.

A baby area for under threes, a toddler area for under fives and then the main section for under twelves.

There are lots of tables and a cafe so you can sit and have a coffee and some food while the Little Ones wear themselves out. To be honest, the food is not amazing and is mostly the usual beige kids offerings of chips, nuggets, fish fingers etc. It would be nice to see a bit more healthy food and the coffee wasn’t wonderful but let’s be honest no one is really visiting for the food and drink.

There are lots of high chairs, changing stations and mini toilets which makes it easier for pre-schoolers who like to do things on their own! And you can bring buggies in as well.

PARKING & GETTING TO OWLS PLAY CENTRE

As it’s part of Fairlop Waters Country Park there is plenty of parking but the only downside is the cost and the fact you have to have coins. I’m hoping if they have to update the machines for the new pound coins they might install a pay by phone option – especially as half the machines are always out of order. The prices are £1.30 for 1-2 hours but as most sessions are usually a few hours you’re more likely going to be paying the £3 all day charge. The fact that it is right next to Fairlop Waters does mean that you can make a day of it. The lake is lovely to walk around and there are climbing boulders and logs to climb on all around the lake if you need to wear the Little Ones out even more!

If you’re visiting by public transport it’s only a few minutes walk from Fairlop Waters tube and you can get take bus routes 150 167 169 247 275 462 which all stop at Fullwell Cross, stop A.

Yay for Easter – it means Spring is finally here, daffodils are cheering up gardens everywhere and of course you can eat lots of chocolate without feeling guilty. My mum used to hide chocolate eggs all over the house on Easter Sunday and so I love an Easter egg hunt. I’ve been doing them with my little one since he could toddle around the garden but this year I think he’s old enough to enjoy a more adventurous Easter egg hunt. Here are some suggestions for some in West Essex and London as well as other Easter and Springtime activites to do with the children.

Explore the hidden depths of the Gardens on an interactive trail culminating at the magical Moomin camp in the wild woodland of the Natural Area. Take part in craft workshops while you sample the Moomins’ beloved pancakes and visit the Hemulens’ Herbarium to find out more about your favourite spring flowers and plant conservation.

Originally created in the 1950s, the Moomins are a family of adventurous and nature-loving creatures from the culturally iconic storybooks by Finnish writer and artist Tove Jansson.

In place of the Easter Sunday Easter Egg Hunt, this year we’ll be giving away delicious Lindt chocolate treats at the gates on Easter Sunday.

Step into the wonderful world of Alice in Wonderland at Valentines Mansion. With interactive outdoor theatre performances, craft activities, childrens rides, activity trails, movie time and much, much more. Suitable for 5 years plus

Explore the wow-world of colours with this curious little owl who is determined to stay awake to see what day light brings. From the warm pink glow of dawn through to a day filled with the bright colours of green leaves, blue sky, grey clouds and, finally, a stunning rainbow — ‘WOW!’. But despite the beauty of the daytime world, the little owl decides that the night-time stars are the most beautiful of all.

This acclaimed children’s book by award-winning author Tim Hopgood is brought to life with beautiful story-telling, puppetry and music.

Suitable for children ages 2 – 5 years old and duration is 35 minutes.

Epping Ongar Railway’s beloved Bertie Bunny will be leading what is probably the longest Easter egg hunt in Essex. Running the length of the railway track, from Ongar through to Coopersale, the distance covered is equivalent to 131,579 eggs placed end to end!

Children will follow clues to find numbered eggs along the railway and will recieve a special Easter treat when they hand in their sheets. The Easter Bunny will be out and about on the stations and aboard some special trains during the day. There’s also face painting and a children’s disco at various times throughout the day at North Weald station.

Family fun at Hopefield Animal Sanctuary this Easter with an Easter egg hunt, stalls, inflateables, live music, animal handling and the fantastic Crazy Legs providing the children with fantastic entertainment. Plus you get to see over 400 of their rescued animals.

Children can see the Easter bunny and join in the Easter egg hunt while adults enjoy the spring flowers. There will be tea/coffee and homemade cakes available until 4.00pm and the gift shop will be open until the same time.

Easter fun at The View at the Chingford end of Epping Forest. There’s egg decorating, Easter crafts and Easter egg rolling at 2pm. There’s also an Easter trail where you can follow clues along the woodland trail to mee the Easter bunny.

And it’s a bit of a trek over to West London but the JURASSIC KINGDOM dinosaur exhibition at Osterley Park is brilliant and well worth a vist. It’s on until 17th April and you can read my review of Jurassic Kingdom here.

After neglecting the blog for a while, I normally start the next post with an apology but frankly this picture will show you why I’m not sorry! I’ve been making the most of maternity leave with an extended holiday to Oman to visit my parents. They will be retiring this Spring after 19 years in this amazing Middle East country and, as they’ve spent most of their married life travelling and working around the world, it’s the longest they have lived anywhere. The Omani people are lovely and the country has worked hard to preserve its rich cultural heritage and stunning landscape. And as you can see from this photo, the beaches aren’t bad either. Obviously they are very sad to be leaving such a beautiful country and I’m gutted that I won’t be heading out there for a dose of winter sunshine each year.

Ma’a as-salaama Oman.

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About me

I’m Dana and I live in Woodford Green with The Little One (4 years old), No.2 (almost a year) and the boyfriend.
This is about our mini adventures as we explore the local area finding family-friendly places and activities in Woodford, Wanstead, London and beyond.